Abstract
Calcareous soils generally have low levels of organic matter and nitrogen; they require modification to promote their support for agriculture production. Calcareous soils are commonly found in important agricultural areas throughout the world, mainly around the Mediterranean, America and Australia. In this study, we the isolated and identified different groups of microorganisms, from a product made from seaweed, in relation to their soil improvement properties. The objective was to use these microorganisms for the solubilization of specific soil elements and reduce their accumulation as a result of overfertilization. The isolated microorganisms were grown in specific culture media and were applied on limestone to determine their effect on mobility of Ca, Mg and K. Also, changes in soil properties such as pH, texture and density were evaluated. This study demonstrated that the treatments applied were able to modify the solubility of Ca, Mg and K, increasing it, in some cases, up to 3500%. In addition, an increase of organic matter close to 200% was observed. Both the group of molds and yeasts, and the group of nitrogen-fixing microorganisms, modified the proportion of sand, silt and clay in the treated limestone. These results open possibilities for the widespread use of marine microorganisms on a large scale in the agricultural sector, since they improve the nutrient availability present in the soil.
Highlights
Soil degradation, by acidification/basification and salinization, is the main consequence of intensive agricultural techniques [1]
The microorganism isolation from Algaenzims® was performed by selecting the proper growth medium in order to obtain the nutritional and environmental conditions to promote the growth of the different kinds of microorganisms
The presence of these different microbial groups is due to the raw material used for producing Algaenzims®, and they can play an important role as plant growth stimulators
Summary
By acidification/basification and salinization, is the main consequence of intensive agricultural techniques [1]. This is even more significant in calcareous soils, which are distributed all around the world. From an environmental point of view, mineral sources allow the solving of serious problems in agricultural production, of which reduction of acidity, erosion, soil salinity and loss of nutrients are the most representative. The role of microorganisms in the physicochemical modification of soil has been investigated. This modification is affected by the translocation of the metal cations in the soil [6,7]
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